Star Trek • The Next Reel

Episode description

"Your father was the captain of a starship for twelve minutes. He saved 800 lives, including your mother’s and yours. I dare you to do better."

With the financial disappointment of Star Trek: Nemesis, Paramount wasn’t so sure they would return to the well again. But in 2005, when Viacom/Paramount split from CBS, they had to get a movie in the works or risk losing rights to the property. Hence, Star Trek was born. But screenwriters Robert Orci, Alex Kurtzman and director JJ Abrams didn’t want to continue the story from where it left off – they felt it had been played out. They went back to one of the early ideas to have Kirk and Spock in their Academy years. Join us – Pete Wright and Andy Nelson – as we continue our Star Trek series with Abrams’ 2009 film Star Trek.

We talk about the nature of this reboot, which is a bit more a rebirth or a timeline shift, and how well that works for us. We discuss the cast and how they all feel in the roles they inhabit. We look at the redesigned ship and how logical its interiors are in context of its exteriors. We chat about the kinetic energy Abrams brings to the film, and how well that works with Dan Mindel’s cinematography. We touch on Michael Giacchino’s score and what we think of it in context of the film as well as how well it stacks up to the rest of the music in the franchise thus far. And we look at the script and how wonderfully it develops the characters from their origins, notably Kirk and Spock.

We have a great time with this film – certainly one that stands out in the franchise. If you have been avoiding this series because you’re not a Trek fan, this might be the one worth trying to see what you think. Regardless, tune in to this week’s show!

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